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7 Ways to turn any meeting into a fascinating experience

Originally published by: Sally Hogshead, Feb 23, 2017, on: howtofascinate.com

In a crowded, busy, distracted world… how can you design an experience that your audience will never forget? How can you inspire even the most jaded audiences?

It’s tough to impress your clients and audiences. Expectations are higher, and attention spans are shorter. How to keep people off their iPhones, and on topic?

Taking meetings from “uninspired” to “unforgettable”

In this battle for attention, you can design unforgettable meetings, once you find new ways to fascinate.

When you fascinate your participants, they’re more likely to learn, retain, and apply what they’ve experienced. They reach for higher levels of learning, and eagerly share ideas. Your participants become raving fans.

How exactly can you achieve this? Can anyone design an unforgettable experience? If so, what’s the process?

7 ways to turn any meeting into a fascinating experience

A quick glimpse inside the seven ways that you can design fascinating experiences:

1. PASSION: Build emotional connections.
Heighten your participants’ emotional connection to a topic by developing ways for them to bond. People are far less likely to forget emotions than facts. A few examples: Opt for ways to heighten the five senses: through colorful locations, delicious food, and music. Select a speaker with a heartfelt personal story. Avoid focusing on cold, hard facts in your content, because these dampen emotion. Any type of learning can make people feel passionately about the subject matter, once you tap into the brain’s hardwired patterns.

2. INNOVATION: Surprise and delight with creativity.
Tweak the norms. Incorporate humor. Make the planning experience fun for your client and team. When people experience something new, they are more likely to tell others about it because it’s noteworthy. For instance, instead of the standard conference format, defy expectations and experiment with something out-of-the-box, such as witty marketing materials, or unexpected exotic cuisine.

3. POWER: Allow them to control part of the experience.
Empower participants to confidently network and make new connections. 90% of introductions fail to lead to future connections because people simply don’t know how to open a conversation. With a few simple tools, attendees can stop feeling unconfident and start building their network. For instance, add a conversation starter to each nametag.

4. PRESTIGE: Impress them with a new standard.
Find one way to over-deliver. Increase their perceived value of sharing in this moment. Instead of making everything good, find one element they’ll never forget. For instance, curate the guest list to increase demand, or invest in the best possible opening speaker or performer. A Virtuoso conference surprised attendees when Frances Ford Coppola walked on stage as the closing keynote, and an Epsilon meeting wowed executives with a performance by Jewel.

5. ALERT: Teach with precise data and facts.
Sometimes, an emotional approach isn’t the most effective. When delivering a complex analysis of a problem, it’s more effective to avoid the warm-and-fuzzy, and instead, impress with a crisp analysis, impressive charts and graphs, and precise results.

6. MYSTIQUE: Arouse curiosity to learn more.
Hint at what’s to come, but don’t give it all away. Get them leaning forward in their seats, so they can’t wait to find out what’s next in the agenda. Get them buzzing. Curiosity is an incredibly powerful motivator. An increased desire to learn more gets people “hooked,” so they stay involved. The TED conference, for instance, never reveals exactly how speakers are chosen, which adds to the allure of the unknown. What about keeping the keynote speaker or closing party performer a secret?

7. TRUST: Rely on traditional patterns, such as familiar hotels, or standard foods.
Sometimes, the wisest choice is to go with what’s worked in the past. Rather than re-inventing the wheel, build trust by repeating a familiar format. Incorporate traditions, and repeat stories of shared history.

By applying one or more of these seven tools, anyone can make a meeting go from uninspired to unforgettable. Think of this system as a new shortcut to earning and keeping anyone’s attention.

 

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6 Stupid Things Managers Do to Kill Morale

Originally published by: Travis Bradberry, Nov 30, 2016, on: www.forbes.com
 It’s pretty incredible how often you hear managers complaining about their best employees leaving, and they really do have something to complain about—few things are as costly and disruptive as good people walking out the door.

But managers tend to blame their turnover problems on everything under the sun while ignoring the crux of the matter: people don’t leave jobs; they leave managers.

Bad management does not discriminate based on salary or job title. A Fortune 500 executive team can experience more dissatisfaction and turnover than the baristas at a local coffee shop. The more demanding your job is and the less control you have over what you do, the more likely you are to suffer. A study by the American Psychological Association found that people whose work meets both these criteria are more likely to experience exhaustion, poor sleep, anxiety, and depression.

The sad thing is that this suffering can easily be avoided. All that’s required is a new perspective and some extra effort on the manager’s part to give employees autonomy and make their work feel less demanding. To get there, managers must understand what they’re doing to kill morale. The following practices are the worst offenders, and they must be abolished if you’re going to hang on to good employees.

Withholding praise. It’s easy to underestimate the power of a pat on the back, especially with top performers who are intrinsically motivated. Everyone likes kudos, none more so than those who work hard and give their all. Managers need to communicate with their people to find out what makes them feel good (for some, it’s a raise; for others, it’s public recognition) and then to reward them for a job well done. With top performers, this will happen often if you’re doing it right. This doesn’t mean that managers need to praise people for showing up on time or working an eight-hour day—these things are the price of entry—but a boss who does not give praise to dedicated employees erodes their commitment to the job.

Overworking people. Nothing burns good employees out quite like overworking them. It’s so tempting to work the best people hard that managers frequently fall into this trap. Overworking good employees is perplexing for them as it makes them feel as if they’re being punished for their great performance. Overworking employees is also counterproductive. New research from Stanford showed that productivity per hour declines sharply when the workweek exceeds 50 hours, and productivity drops off so much after 55 hours that you don’t get anything out of working more. Talented employees will take on a bigger workload, but they won’t stay if their job suffocates them in the process. Raises, promotions, and title-changes are all acceptable ways to increase workload. If managers simply increase workload because people are talented, without changing a thing, these employees will seek another job that gives them what they deserve.

Holding people back. As an employee, you want to bring value to your job, and you do so with a unique set of skills and experience. So how is it that you can do your job so well that you become irreplaceable? This happens when managers sacrifice your upward mobility for their best interests. If you’re looking for your next career opportunity, and your boss is unwilling to let you move up the ladder, your enthusiasm is bound to wane. Taking away opportunities for advancement is a serious morale killer.

Management may have a beginning, but it certainly has no end. When blessed with a talented employee, it’s the manager’s job to keep finding areas in which they can improve to expand their skill set and further their career. The most talented employees want feedback—more so than the less talented ones—and it’s a manager’s job to keep it coming. Otherwise, people grow bored and complacent.

Playing the blame game. A boss who is too proud to admit a mistake or who singles out individuals in front of the group creates a culture that is riddled with fear and anxiety. It’s impossible to bring your best to your work when you’re walking on eggshells. Instead of pointing fingers when something goes wrong, good managers work collaboratively with their team and focus on solutions. They pull people aside to discuss slip-ups instead of publicly shaming them, and they’re willing to accept responsibility for mistakes made under their leadership.

Frequent threats of firing. Some managers use threats of termination to keep you in line and to scare you into performing better. This is a lazy and shortsighted way of motivating people. People who feel disposable are quick to find another job where they’ll be valued and will receive the respect that they deserve.

Not letting people pursue their passions. Talented employees are passionate. Providing opportunities for them to pursue their passions improves their productivity and job satisfaction, but many managers want people to work within a little box. These managers fear that productivity will decline if they let people expand their focus and pursue their passions. This fear is unfounded. Studies have shown that people who are able to pursue their passions at work experience flow, a euphoric state of mind that is five times more productive than the norm.

Bringing It All Together

If managers want their best people to stay, they need to think carefully about how they treat them. While good employees are as tough as nails, their talent gives them an abundance of options. Managers need to make people want to work for them.

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How to achieve a work-life balance as a Hospitality Manager

Originally published by: Maria Gee, Sep 22, 2016, on: blog.harri.com

Maintaining the ideal work-life balance is difficult for nearly all professionals, especially in the 24/7 world of hospitality.  Keeping your personal and restaurant life in check is no easy task if you have one day off a week and are otherwise “on” the rest of the time.  Taking some steps to avoid taking on more than you can chew can help you from feeling overwhelmed.  Many people will argue that being a restaurant manager is a not just a hospitality job, but a stressful lifestyle.  However, there are some steps you can take a to make a difference and lift (at least some) stress off your shoulders.

PUT YOU FIRST

Yes, hospitality is the ultimate team sport and as a hospitality manager you are the captain.  With that being said, self-care is not selfish.  If you’re the type of person who lives and breathes by his or her calendar, check if you have any space at all for the upcoming week to “recharge”.  Maintain your sanity by doing something for YOU each day, even if it’s for 15 mins – grab a coffee, go for a walk, even call your family (remember them?).  Of course, saying you will do it is only halfway there, hence your calendar.  Actively schedule 15 – 30 mins of “Me Time” once a day, slowly but surely your eyebrows will begin to unfurrow and you’ll spare a few hairs from going grey.  Even better, schedule a workout or some downtime before your shift.  Preventing yourself from getting overly stressed, seems unavoidable on a Friday at at 8 PM when you’re 2 servers and 3 cooks down.  Trust that when you invest a little bit of time to re-energize yourself, and put your needs first then everything falls into place.

RELEARNING THE WORD “NO”

    Being a restaurant manager means you spend a majority of your day putting out everyone else’s fires.  It comes with the territory, that’s something we cannot help.  However, having the “Don’t worry, I got this” attitude towards everything can take its toll on your life.  This is especially true of digging staff out of holes, there are times when you have to let staff figure out some problems for themselves.  If a host does not have table numbers memorized four weeks in, then you need to delegate to a more senior host or maitre’d in the meantime, instead of seating guests yourself (then obviously reevaluate his or her training). Sure, doing things a certain way is important, but it is a true testament to your management skills when staff can navigate themselves through a service.  Saying “no” to certain tasks can be a gift sometimes, and certainly if you’re holding down the fort for a double shift. If you are more visual, using your calendar to approximate task timelines can be extremely useful.  The fear of letting your restaurant and staff down may keep you from saying no, this is not the case at all.  Realizing your limitations is more efficient to yourself, the restaurant, and the quality of the service.

PRIORITIZING EFFECTIVELY

Maybe managing calendars is not your thing.  Let’s put your MBA in Philosophy and concentration in Metaphysics to good use right now, just kidding (kind of). Think of your life as a jar.  Place some large rocks the jar to reach the top, it seems full right? Some would say so, but now picture placing smaller rocks into the jar, then pouring in gravel, sand and finally water until the jar’s contents are up to the brim.  Now it’s actually full.  The lesson of the jar metaphor is to begin with larger priorities and work to the smallest tasks, or not everything will fit into your life.  If you began with water, the whole jar would overflow if you dropped even one large rock in.  To put this lesson in action, simplify your life by starting with the big stuff first.   Write down 3 “big” tasks or decisions you must accomplish everyday, then follow with less important tasks, smaller tasks, then fun, etc.  Even if you make the list in your phone on the train during your commute to work, it will set you up for a productive shift.

JUST GET IT DONE

    Even though Sheryl Sandberg is not on the floor of a restaurant on a daily basis, in her widely discussed book, Lean In, the COO of Facebook, writes about a poster in the Facebook offices that reads, “Done is better than Perfect”.  Getting a task done is usually better than scrutinizing over its imperfections.  Many people describe themselves as perfectionists, hospitality managers are no exception.  While this trait can be positive, it can inhibit getting things done in a timely manner.  Sure, your new server on Table 22 served drinks to the man before the woman who are clearly on a date, and it makes your eye twitch with annoyance.  However, you can address that at pre-shift tomorrow to all of your servers, because you have 10 minutes to write your shift notes before close which is more important.  Of course, quality is extremely important, but time is everything.  If the server completely forgot to put in the order the couple’s drinks, causing them to walk out, that would be a different story.  The mission is to get everything done as well and efficiently as possible, but know that done is indeed better than perfect.

LOGOUT OF YOUR WORK EMAIL

    Being hopelessly addicted to glowing screens is the plight of our generation in the workplace, we are extremely fortunate in this sense.  As great as accessibility can be, constantly being “on” can be less than helpful when trying to maintain a better work-life balance.  When you have left your shift and sent your last email, immediately logout of your work email.  If there is a real emergency in the restaurant then the manager on duty is perfectly capable of calling or texting you.  There are various studies show that our brain activity increases from looking at screens all day, and your smartphone is as addictive as some drugs and alcohol.  So, obviously receiving continuous notifications from work emails can amplify this.  The worst thing you can do is still be logged into you your work email on your day off and being active on it! This creates the idea that you are always “on” and never stop working.   Then no one will leave you alone, making for a terrible day off.  So for your staff and your own sanity, save your emails and tasks for in restaurant only – or as much as you can.  The key to a healthy work-life balance is changing things a little at a time, and at the end of the day it’s all about progress.

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Is your Schedule Killing your Creativity

Originally published by: Tim Sanders, Aug 16, 2016, on: linkedin.com

Too many people sabotage their career by being too efficient with their time.  They fill up their daily schedule with meetings and phone calls, thinking that they are being highly productive.  The result is a week of conversations, with little time left to “work on work.”

A recent IBM survey of over 1000 CEO’s found that creativity was the top skill required for leadership success.  This makes sense, as innovation is the prescription for dealing with a highly disruptive business environment.  Technology, media, globalization all come together to put creative demands on leaders and manager everywhere.

The problem is, creative thinking requires a lot of white space on your calendar.  It’s not something you can schedule or squeeze in on a long flight or a Sunday afternoon.  Filmmaker David Lynch believes that “It takes four hours to get one hour of creative work done.”  By that he means that we must enter into a problem consideration mode for extended periods of time to induce free association…which leads to innovative business solutions.

But if your calendar is full of every call request and meeting invitation that comes your way, you won’t have any time to think.  This is why I block out two hours of unscheduled time daily to work on my projects, research problems, white board solutions and passively think creatively while doing low mental-requirement tasks.  It’s in these gaps where our breakthroughs occur.

As a leader, you aren’t paid to meet or talk to others.  You are paid to think.  Einstein, Edison and Jobs put their feet up on their desk or took long walks to actively consider solutions – and that’s where their eureka moments happened.

Make every meeting and calendar item fight for its life.  Pick the ones that are truly business drivers.  Limit your “getting to know you” lunches and out-of-office meetings to one a week and make them count!  If you find enough time during your most fruitful mental states (M-F days), you’ll achieve the creative breakthroughs you need to make your mark.

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When To Cut Your Top Producer Loose

Originally published by: Tim Sanders, Aug 16, 2016, on: www.linkedin.com

Have you ever heard the phrase, “horizontal turnover”?

This is where the jerk stays and the team around him or her leaves.  This happens more than you think, especially in a sales driven culture where top producers are god-like Rock Stars to management.

How can it happen?  Easy: They get hired, and once in, their numbers act as a shield to protect them from their personality or pure evilness.  This is why I advise recruiters to scrutinize a candidate for the jerk-factor, especially when he or she has a solid track record…yet is available.  There are tell-tale signs: They brag, focus on what is wrong with others, make excuses for past mistakes and show disdain for those who ‘bring in less money’ than they do.  You might also test the candidate by having him or her hang out with very junior staffers, then find out how he or she behaved.  Better yet, have an employee pose as a fellow applicant in the waiting area, with instructions to attempt to strike up a conversation.  That always brings out the (competitively fueled) jerk.

If you realize you have a Larry David sitting in front of you, if you can, refer them to a competitor. I’ve seen this happen before when I was working in HR at Yahoo and it works like a charm.  The competitor is seduced by the numbers, hires the jerk and a year later at the SHRM conference when you ask about Larry you hear, “He’s still here.  But everyone else in the group bugged out.”

Your culture is a conversation, led by leaders, about ‘how we do things around here’.  If you hire jerks, especially those with great numbers behind them, your culture will become negative where ‘you eat what you kill’ becomes the mantra of the organization.

BTW: The very people whom the competent jerk chases off are often the ones you need the most.  They are the heart of your company’s ability to deliver top quality service. You can train people to achieve metrics, but unfortunately, there’s not a good cure for being insensitive and arrogant.

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Clear these three hurdles to be a great leader

Originally published by: Tim Sanders, Aug 10, 2016, on: linkedin.com

Napoleon Bonaparte believed that the leader’s role is “to define reality, then give hope.” Within this prescription lies a formidable challenge to leaders.  How can you focus on the challenges and opportunities of today and, at the same time, maintain the spirit and effectiveness to lead your team forward?

In today’s business environment, there are high hurdles that stand between you and leadership success.  The ability to leap over them through lifestyle design and talent development separates the truly effective from the ambitious or charismatic.  The three hurdles are:

Distraction: Today’s technology makes it nearly impossible to work without distraction.  Think about right now.  Some of you are reading this post, and will stop to check your email that just dinged. Before you can get back to reading this, a text comes through on your smart phone, requiring a quick call.  After it, you return to grazing on a budget spreadsheet, which you were working on before you booted your internet browser, clicked around and found this article. Sound familiar?  You may call this multi-tasking, but really, it’s LWD (Leading While Distracted).

SOLUTION: Work on one task at a time. Turn off email notifications and instead, schedule times during the day to read-respond (and only do that during that time!). Put your smart phone in Airplane Mode.  Push back on anyone that invades your scheduled focus time.  For more on this, read Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence by Daniel Goleman

Abstraction: Too often, leaders rely on verbal communication to convey complex ideas. They often do this via email or written memos.  Words often don’t work, and in turn, there is confusion, requiring you to repeat the attempt and grow frustrated.  You cannot define reality or give hope if you cannot reduce abstractions into concrete ideas.  Your bullet point slides don’t solve the problem, they just summarize your wordy attempts to get through.

SOLUTION: Show them, don’t tell them. Find visual ways to express your ideas. You can find images on Google or iStockPhoto.  Better yet, create prototypes of a proposed process or product. They could be simple diagrams or rough sketches.  At innovation consultancy IDEO there’s a saying: A prototype is worth 1000 meetings.  For more, read Blah Blah Blah: What To Do When Words Don’t Work by Dan Roam.

Dissatisfaction: This is the highest hurdle, especially if you’ve been leading for a while. Skillsoft’s Taavo Godtfredsen has spent time with hundreds of leaders and leadership experts during his career and has discovered that career dissatisfaction (burnout, resentment) is a supreme challenge to effectiveness.  Long after the luster of the title and power has faded, the pressures of leading and chasing made up goals crushes the best of leaders.  Never assume you’ll stay motivated!

SOLUTION: Find work-life balance, even if it means more delegation. Design you lifestyle to recharge your spirit as well as physical health.  Revisit the purpose of your organization, and periodically read your ‘fan mail’ to understand the significance of your work.  For more, read Fully Charged: The 3 Keys To Energizing Your Work and Life by Tom Rath.

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Two Tactics to get your prospecting emails opened

Originally published: Jul, 2016, on: speakersue.com

At this moment, I have 135 emails in my inbox. I admit to using my inbox as my to-do list, and you may be a “zero-email inboxer.” Either way, we are both being strategic about the email we deal with and how we deal with it.

Whether your prospects favor one extreme or the other, the only way to persuade them to read, archive, or act (hallelujah!) on your email message is to keep it concise and totally relevant.

Tactic #1: Respect your customer.

The clearest sign of respect is to show value for time.  A long email filled with product features or one that doesn’t seem to have any purpose other than to toot the writer’s horn is just wrong, but even a concise email can be disrespectful.

Here is an example of a concise sales effort gone bad:

Hi Name,

I trust this email finds you well. We would like to secure a date to come and an discuss opportunities. How does your calendar look the week of January 6, 2014?

Best…

Really?

The first sentence is the tip off. Instead of providing an authentic touch point, the email begins with a throwaway sentence. More than that, it reads as if the writer is living in the 19th century! He “trusts” the email finds the recipient well? Who talks like that?

The next sentence is all about the writer and his opportunities. It provides no motivation for the buyer. Oh, and the typos were part of the original email.

The last sentence provides a semi-action. How does my calendar look, you ask? Busy. Very, very busy.

Respect customers by crafting a brief message that helps them see the value in taking precious time to talk to you. Help them understand why it might be to their advantage to meet with you.

And don’t make them take the next step! Make their life easy. Offer to phone them the week of January 6, and suggest that, if there is a time that is most convenient for them, you’ll follow up as they suggest. Take control and make them feel safe in advancing their buying process with you.

Tactic #2: Be relevant.

Upon receiving a Request for Proposal (RFP) for 12 sleeping rooms for one night and a boardroom with accompanying food and beverage, the eager salesperson emailed back:

Thank you for your request! When you see our new 241-slip marina, you will know you made a great choice selecting ABC Hotel.

What? Did the RFP mention a flotilla, and I just missed that part? (And how inauthentic, as an RFP indicates only a consideration of the hotel, not a commitment to select it!)

Just because you are excited about an aspect of your product or service doesn’t mean your customers will be. Align your messaging with what matters to them, not to what excites you. When you can transfer the passion you feel for your product to passion for the prospect’s success, you will enjoy unlimited success.

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5 Steps to Social Selling Success

Originally published by: Viveka von Rosen, Jan 17, 2016, on: www.linkedin.com

LinkedIn is one of the oldest (2003) and really one of the more sophisticated social media sites for business people. Designed to connect professionals and showcase their resumes, few companies thought to market their products and services on the platform in the early days. Today, however, it has grown into a thriving community that presents plenty of opportunities for sales with just a little bit of creativity.

Here are five ways you can sell on LinkedIn –without really selling!

ONE: Join Groups – Even though LinkedIn groups are not what they used to be, if you pick the right group, they can still be a great place to find and connect with like-minded individuals. Social Selling on LinkedIn works best when you are a part of the communities you wish to sell to. Fortunately, LinkedIn makes this easy with a variety of groups based on profession and interests. When you join a group, you expand your network in every direction and can begin pulling leads from any vertical you choose. It is the both of best worlds with a specialized, but wide audience all in one place. Professionals who use LinkedIn for networking are also more likely to share products and services they believe in with their peers, increasing your visibility with time.

TWO: Produce Quality Content – Another important part of being a successful seller on LinkedIn is creating quality content. Not only can you share great content with LinkedIn Publisher, but you can use Sponsored Updates to share that content. However, you must keep in mind the audience you are addressing and ensure that the content you are sharing is up to par with other professionals in the arena.

THREE: Use the Right Tools – While LinkedIn is a great platform for Social Selling, sometimes it needs a little nudge! (Especially with the new User Interface.) Fortunately a number of developers have introduced browser based extensions that can help you track your contacts and find new leads. These extensions (Nimble, Dux-Soup, eGrabber and LinMailPro to name a few) allow you to see recent activity and gauge the level of interest from prospective buyers. This all improves your ability to guide the buyer’s journey.

FOUR: Be Consistent. When you first join LinkedIn with the intent of social selling, it’s easy to be dazzled by all of the information and possibilities in front of you. You suddenly have a direct line to professionals from all walks of life. You can take a peek into their lives and take your time planning your approach. However, this process is also time consuming. Many would-be social sellers start out strong and then lose momentum over time. Prospects who may have taken interest initially will soon lose interest if you stop producing content or initiating contact. Be very selective on who you engage with, and make sure to engage consistently.

FIVE: Set a Goal – When it comes to Social Selling on LinkedIn, many companies approach the platform with indifference. If sales happen then that’s good, but it’s almost not expected. Because there are no goals or systems in place. This makes it hard to achieve results. In order to actually make sales on LinkedIn you need to reach for a specific outcome. This serves two purposes. First, it forces you to make a plan and take action continually (see point 4). Secondly, it encourages you to learn from your mistakes over time. Instead of giving up when something doesn’t work, commitment to a goal will make you look at what went wrong and change your strategy accordingly. It may be difficult to track metrics specific to LinkedIn, but it is definitely worth your time once you have the system down.

Learning to make social sales can be challenging at first. However, LinkedIn provides a unique opportunity for B2B sales where other social media sites are not quite as robust. The type of interaction and networking that happens on LinkedIn offers an easy way to expand your reach to other professionals and quickly become a leader by impressing other leaders in their fields. The most important thing to keep in mind when you begin is consistency and quality as you build up your profile on the site. Establishing great content is the key to growing LinkedIn Social selling.

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Housekeeping Interview Questions- Managers can use

Originally published by: Alison Doyle, June 27, 2016, on: thebalance.com

If you are applying for a housekeeping job, below are some housekeeping interview questions for you to review.
Working in a housekeeping position requires hard work, physical capability, and stamina. In addition, a housekeeping employee needs to interact with customers on a one-on-one basis.

Prepare for the Interview

  • Be ready to talk about your work and life experience
  • Bring contact information for references who can attest to your character and housekeeping ability
  • Be clear on what you can do, how you will do it, what cleaning products you like to use, and how long it takes you to clean

Housekeeping Interview Questions

  • Why have you chosen housekeeping?
  • What are the key components of housekeeping?
  • Are you good at multitasking?
  • How would you handle a client who was angry or upset about something?
  • What would you do if one of your colleagues was behaving inappropriately on the job?
  • What were your responsibilities and tasks in your last position?
  • Why did you leave your last position?
  • What do you find rewarding about housekeeping?
  • What do you dislike about housekeeping?
  • What skills do you have that you feel help you to be a good housekeeper?
  • What do you think are the most important skills for a housekeeper?
  • What knowledge do you feel is required for a successful housekeeper?
  • How comfortable are you with chemical safety procedures?
  • Can you give me some examples of health and safety procedures you have used?
  • What types of procedure tracking systems have you used?
  • Do you enjoy working as part of a team?
  • How well do you work on your own?
  • When can you start working?
  • What hours and days are you available?
  • Do you have reliable transportation?
  • What are two words that you would use to describe yourself?
  • What are two words that your previous supervisor would use to describe you?
  • What has been your greatest accomplishment at work?
  • What has been your greatest disappointment at work?
  • Describe the most productive environment you have worked in.
  • What would be your ideal working environment?
  • What characteristics does a great manager possess?
  • How energetic a person would you say you are?
  • How energetic would your colleagues say you are?
  • Have there been times when you have been asked to perform duties that were not in your job description? What did you do?
  • Have there been times when you have not agreed with a company policy? How did you handle the situation?
  • Have you ever disagreed with your supervisor about a policy or situation? What did you do?
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Top 10 Questions you’ll be asked in a Hotel Interview (Entry Level)

Originally published by: Angela Rose, Jun 20, 2016, on: www.hcareers.com

Whether you’re applying for a guest service position—such as front desk agent, porter, concierge or housekeeper—or are seeking employment in hotel administration, you’re going to have to ace one or more interviews before you land a job. A professional appearance and comfortable body language will certainly play a role in your success, but the most important consideration for hiring managers will be your ability to answer their interview questions with confident honesty. As you prepare for your next opportunity to dazzle a potential employer with your passion for hospitality, don’t neglect practicing your responses to these top 10 interview questions for hotel jobs.

1. Why do you want to work for this hotel?

Obviously, you have bills to pay. However, comments about compensation or “I just need a job” are the last thing a hiring manager wants to hear. To best answer this question, you need to spend time learning about the hotel’s history, mission and culture. Check out their website and search the Internet for press releases and other news. If you have access, talk to a few of their employees. Then put together a response that shows you’ve done your research and are a good match for the hotel’s current and future needs as well as culture.

2. How long will you work for Hotel ABC if you’re hired?
Turnover is often a major challenge for hospitality employers. They don’t want to spend the hotel’s time and resources to train you if you don’t intend to stay for long. You can reiterate your response to the previous question and assure the hiring manager that you see yourself working for Hotel ABC for a long time. However, if there is a reason you may need to leave in the near future—a cross-country move or going back to school for example—be honest. Accepting a position and then disappointing your employer by moving on too soon could be worse for your career in the long run.

3. Why did you leave/are you leaving Hotel XYZ?
Maybe you want a more competitive salary. Perhaps you cannot abide your current manager. You may even be bored. Whatever the actual reason, find a way to stay positive. It may be easiest to focus on what you want from your new job—greater challenges, more advancement opportunity, a chance to learn a new aspect of hospitality—rather than what you didn’t like about your last one.

4. Why are you the best candidate for this position?
Employers want to hear about more than the hard skills you’ve listed on your resume. Think about the job description as well as what you’ve learned about the hotel’s culture, mission and current needs. Then use your response to emphasize your compatibility and ways you will use those skills to help them tackle their challenges.

5. What does good guest service mean to you?
Hospitality is all about customer service, so you’re just as likely to get this question when you apply for an administration position as when you’re after one at the front desk. While the answer is common sense, a good way to make a memorable impression is to work language from the hotel’s own marketing materials (such as their website) into your response.

6. Describe a time when you had to deal with an unhappy hotel guest. How did you handle the situation?
When presented with situational interview questions like this one, it’s important to create a clear and concise answer that describes the problem you encountered, the steps you took to address it, and the ultimate solution. Stay positive and show that you learned something from the situation whenever possible.

7. Describe a time you had to disappoint a guest. What was the situation and how did you handle it?
Not all guest problems can be solved. Hotel employers want to hire someone who can empathize and remain professional even when they’re faced with an impossible task.

8. Let’s say your to-do list has five tasks and you only have time for three. How would you prioritize them?
Whatever your hotel position, there are guaranteed to be days when you cannot complete everything that needs to be done. Hiring managers want to see that you have the ability to analyze such a situation, think clearly when under pressure, make a decision on a course of action and take responsibility as you proceed.

9. A guest asks you for local restaurant and entertainment suggestions. Where would you recommend if they were a single business traveler, young couple or family with children?
Front desk agents and concierges are not the only hotel staff guests turn to for advice. Before any interview, make sure you’re familiar with local attractions and think about those that would best appeal to a variety of travelers.

10. Tell me about a time you disagreed with a coworker. What did you do to resolve the situation?
Hotels employ a diverse spectrum of personalities as well as nationalities. Regardless of your position, teamwork will often be required. The hiring manager wants to select a professional who can work well with others even when they don’t see eye to eye.

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